This article describes a few of the benefits that come from knowing your ennea-type. There are many more benefits over and above those listed here, but this will give you a taste as to whether knowledge of your ennea-type may be useful for you.

Our approach to new methods

One of the biggest things that the Enneagram offers is an awareness of the filters through which we look at everything that we come across in life. Because our filters tend to be our blind spots, impossible for us to see without help from someone or something, we tend to approach new and potentially tools and experiences with an inbuilt bias that can prevent us from getting the most out out them. One example of this is with the process the Byron Katie teaches, called "The Work". Katie's process hasyou fill out what she calls a "Judge Your Neighbour" worksheet, and then ask a few questions to help you to see things from another perspective. Here's how people with some of the different ennea-types might react to this:

• Ennea-type Ones have a tendency to judge themselves constantly, and this exercise may result in them getting angry with themselves for having the thoughts they do about others, and thereforemiss the power of the exercise - seeing things another way.
  
• Ennea-type Sevens have a tendency to want to avoid pain and anything negative, so they may write this exercise off as simply too negative.Or they maydo the worksheet, but have real difficulty seeing how what they've written could apply to them, due to their inbuilt avoidance of seeing anything negative.
  
• Ennea-typeNines have a natural inertialpull thattends to prevent them from finding out aboutwhat theyreally feel and want, because they are afraid that knowing this mayresult in conflict with those around them, if others want something different.Combined with their tendency to seek answers outside of themselves, this may result in an Ennea-Type Nine reading and completely agreeing with the process intellectually, but just never actually getting around to sitting down and applying it.

These are just a few examples to give you an idea of how we tend to look at new tools through our unseen filters, and in doing so, miss out on the benefits of some really helpful tools. An understanding of our ennea-type can alert us to these filters, and help us to get the best out of new tools that we encounter.

Assistance with understanding those you are in relationship with

We often think we know ourselves pretty well, and our partner or friends or family members even better! Learning about the different ennea-types can be quite revealing in this area!!! While we may well know ourselves and others well on a surface level, we are often oblivious to the unconscious beliefs that drive our behaviours, and the behaviours of those around us. An understanding of your own ennea-type, and that of your partner, friend, child etc, can really help in understanding why people do things the way they do, and how you can better relate to them, based on your own unconscious beliefs too.

A simple example might illustrate this best. Imagine a couple, one an ennea-type One, and the other an ennea-type Seven. The One is driven by a constant need to improve things, and often gives unsolicited "constructive criticism" without realising that they are making those around them feel like there is something wrong with them. The Seven is driven a constant need to be optimistic and positive, with a fear of seeing anything "negative" about themselves, as it may result in them being rejected by others. Remember that in both cases these are filters through with the two people see things, based on their particular tendencies.

In this scenario, it would be very easy to imagine that the home improvement committee One could be frustrated in not understanding why their Seven partner avoids doing anything that could, in the One's mind, help them to heal. At the same time it's easy to see how the everything positive Seven could be driven nuts by the One's near constant flow of not so helpful suggestions for improvement!

A word of warning though - it's not a good idea to assume what type someone around you is, unless you are really sure (be mindful of those unknown filters you are looking through!) Enneagram experts warn that it is very easy to mistype someone else, so if you want to better understand your partner, it might be best to see if you can find a way to motivate them to figure out their own type!

If you know you and your partner's or friend's or family member's type, there is some interesting information available from the Enneagram Institute Website on this, and if you create a free login with them more detailed information is also available.

Seeing how your unconscious beliefs are driving you

One of the most powerful aspects of the Enneagram, is the way it can help you to become aware of the unconscious beliefs that are driving your behaviour. This is particularly powerful if you combine your exploration of the Enneagram with a tool like EFTor TAT.Here's an example of how this sort of exploration has been useful.

One of the things about myself that I have become aware ofduring my exploration of the Enneagram, that was quite frankly a bit of a shock,is that I see myself as inherently bad. When I first read about it in the writing about my ennea-type, my conscious mind rejected it, saying that I'd done lots of healing already and that really wasn't an issue for me. But over thenext few days,watching my behaviour and being alert to the thoughtspassing through my mind, it became very clear tome that a lot of my behaviour is driven by a need to appear to be good, and once I faced reality, it was obvious that that meant thatmy behaviour was being driven by feeling I'm inherently not good.

After putting it off for a few days, I decided to sit down and work with this withTAT, and it was just incredible what I discovered. I realised for the first time just how much of my behaviour now, at age 36, is being drivenby the perceptions I formed about myself from when I was born up til around age 9. With the assistance of TAT, Ibecame aware of a whole parade of incidents and comments from my childhood that I had taken on board as meaning I'm bad (based not on the situation or what was said, but onthe faulty filters through which I was looking.) I ended the session feeling incredibly thankful for the combination of themap of the Enneagram, and the light that TAT shines onformerly unconscious beliefs.

And a second example:

I have long had a pattern of doing lots for others, then ending up resentful of it, it's something I've always intensely disliked about myself and I was keen to get it sorted out. While I've been using Reiki, EFT and TAT for a while now, it is so much a part of me that I didn't even think to explore this pattern. When I read that it is common to those with my ennea-type, I decided it was time to get serious.

I did a TAT simply on "Everything that led to this pattern of resentment for me happened". As I went through the steps, it became so apparent to me that I was a bottom-less pit when it came to others expressing appreciation to me, and no matter how much feedback I get, I still feel like it's not enough (that was tough to admit!) Then in the next step, all that unfolded beautifully, as issuestend to do with the help of TAT, and I suddenly saw what was at the root of the resentment pattern I've had for as long as I can remember - I am constantly setting my standards so high that they are impossible to attain, and I don't stop to appreciate myself and what I do achieve. Wow! This might not seem big to others who don't share my issue on this, but my whole world shifted on its axis with this one. Combining TAT with the insights available from the Enneagram is one interesting journey!

Understanding your particular inertial pull against healing and transformation

This is an area of the Enneagram that can be really useful if you are on a journey of personal healing or transformation. We've all made resolutions to get to the bottom of things, only to find a couple of days (or weeks!) later that despite best intentions, we didn't pull it off. An understanding of the tendencies of your ennea-type to pull you away from the sort of self-exploration that is required on your journey can be really helpful.

Here's a few examples of how different ennea-types show the inertial pull against growth and transformation:

• Ennea-Type Ones are in what is called the Self-Forgetting Triad, and their tendency to want to improve things can manifest in their constantly focussing on "helping" those around them to "improve", instead of risking going in and discovering the unconscious beliefs they don't want to know about. This can see a One busy writing, teaching and doing anything to help others on their journey, and thereby completely avoiding doing their own inner exploration.
  
• Ennea-Type Sevens have a tendency to avoid seeing anything in a less than positive light, for fear that it will result in them being rejected. The combination of their tendency being to avoid pain at all costs, with their trap of idealising everything, can result in them seeing everything as just fine, and therefore being a rationalisation for not embarking on any serious self exploration.
  
• Ennea-Type Nines, also in the Self-Forgetting Triad like Ones, have a tendency to focus on the needs of others rather than their own. The combination of their tendency to avoid conflict at all costs, with their trap of falling into being the Seeker and looking for answers outside themselves can result in Nines being so busy anticipating the needs of others, that they never actually stop still long enough to go inward.

As you can see here, an understanding of your particular ennea-type can be really helpful on your personal journey - helping you to see your tendency to avoid certain things, and the traps that you are inclined to fall into.

Not taking it so personally

Most of us have a tendency to identify with the voice we hear in our mind, and to think that the thoughts in our head define who we actually are. There is nothing quite like reading the description of your ennea-type to jolt you out of this, and help you to realise that there are an enormous amount of things in your life (and your thoughts!) that you take personally, that are actually simply the result of your unconscious beliefs. An understanding of this can make a huge difference on your journey.

Here's an example of how this has been of assistance:

I've been meditating for nearly 20 years now, and until recently I wasstill continually frustrated by what I felt was a lack of progress. I read others' accounts of their meditation practice, and wondered why on earth it is that I felt like I'm getting nowhere. Then when I learnt about my ennea-type, I discovered that since I'd been looking through my One filter, I had been taking the voice in head personally all these years, and my meditation had basically become an exercise in listening to the hyper critical voice in my head that told me why I wasn't good enough. What a huge relief to realise that all ennea-type Ones battle with this voice in their head, and that the insights from the Enneagram, combined with TAT, will help me to loosen the hold of this voice over me, and change my meditation practice enormously.

This is simply one example, based on one ennea-type. If you choose to explore your ennea-type, you will find enormous relief in finding that a lot of things you take personally about yourself, are actually common to most with your particular type, and that there are ways that once you are aware of your tendencies, you can loosen their hold over you.

Getting to the bottom of recurring or stubborn issues

Another area where an understanding of your ennea-type can be of assistance is in resolving recurring or stubborn physical or emotional issues. Here's an example to give you an idea of how the Enneagram has been useful in this way.

I've been working on several physical issues over the last few months with Reiki, EFT & TAT. With all of them, I keep coming back to the same core issue - I need to learn how to relax. Well that's all well and good, but that just keeps hitting the brick walls of "But how?" and "Why the heck can't I relax?"

When I learnt about my ennea-type, it was amazing. All the issues I'd been circling around with the other tools, but not quite getting down to that next layer - to the unconscious beliefs driving my inability to relax - suddenly very obviously all originated from the same source - my tendency to continually set standards too high to ever achieve is what is lying underneath my inability to relax. And lying underneath that is my formerly unconscious belief that I am inherently bad. For the first time ever, I really feel that I might be able to unravel the unconscious beliefs holding in place a 20 year + muscle spasm in my neck (imagine my surprise when I read The Spiritual Dimension of the Enneagram that my ennea-type have a tendency to have a stiff neck!)

Conclusion

The benefits of knowing your ennea-type are rich and varied, and this article simply touches on a few to give you a taste of it, and help you to ascertain whether this sort of exploration is for you. To find out more check outthe Sandra Maitri'sThe Spiritual Dimension of the Enneagram.